Building the Burj al Arab

The Burj al Arab

Officials named the proposed hotel Burj al ArabArabic for “the ArabianTower.” It was to be part of the Jumeirah beach area. But Wright did not wantto build the hotel right on the beach. It would block out the beach’s sun formost of the day. Instead, they would build the hotel on an artificial island 919feet (280 m) offshore. A winding causeway (road raised above the water)would connect the beach and the island.Workers began building the island in 1994. They first sank temporary pilesinto the seabed. They then put banks of large rocks around the piles.

Thisformed a sort of pool. For the next step, the seawater was removed from thecenter of the pool. It was replaced by a layer of rocks. Workers laid concretewebbing around the outer edge of the banks. The webbing keeps the foundationrocks from washing away. It also breaks the waves as they hit the island.Construction workers drove 250 permanent piles 131 feet (40 m) throughthis rock foundation and into the seabed. They then laid a concrete floor 6.5 feet(2 m) thick at the base of the island. They added walls around the piles to keep outsand and rock. The floor and walls formed the basement of the hotel. Constructionof the island took three years.